


Love is a fabric which never fades

by elletromil



Series: Hoard my love [1]
Category: Kingsman (Movies)
Genre: Alternative Universe - Dragon, Dragon courting, Dragon in human form Harry, Fluff, Getting Together, M/M, Mutual Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-26
Updated: 2017-02-26
Packaged: 2018-09-27 02:33:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,726
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9946346
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elletromil/pseuds/elletromil
Summary: When Harry started his hoard of clothing, it has come as to no surprise to either him or his parents. After all, he has been drawn to fabrics and texture and colors for as long as he can remember; one of his earliest memory the soft cashmere of his father’s brown sweater and the rough red scales of his mother’s skin.Harry has been courting Eggsy dragon style for a while now without telling him because he's a self-sacrificing idiot who doesn't believe he can be loved. Luckily for them, Eggsy is no such idiot.





	

**Author's Note:**

> So like a year and a half ago I was talking with friends about a dragon Eggsy au and what he would hoard, which morphed into a what dragon Harry would hoard, and then a what would happen if both of them were dragons. I always told myself I would be writing it and I kind of started for a while but me and my attention span of a goldfish never made good progress on it until now.
> 
> This will be a series of three little unrelated ficlets except for the fact that one or both of our dumb idiots are going to be dragon in human form courting the other. I might even get into others pairing one day (like Mercival my little obsession lately) but let's finish the first three before planning for more XD
> 
> This one is of course the one with Harry as the dragon. I really have a lot of fun writing this so hopefully you'll enjoy reading this :D

When Harry started his hoard of clothing, it has come as to no surprise to either him or his parents. After all, he has been drawn to fabrics and texture and colors for as long as he can remember; one of his earliest memory the soft cashmere of his father’s brown sweater and the rough red scales of his mother’s skin.

Some finds it weird that he seems so unconcerned about getting his hoard out in the open world, but it isn’t like he can go out naked either. Anyway, what most people who aren’t dragon fail to realise is that a hoard is often divided into various levels of privacy.

His bulletproof suits are for him the equivalent of the scales his human form lack, more of an armor than an object to be cherished. His tuxedos are similar, but they feel like a disguise, something to impress under false pretenses. They are a necessity he only bears with for missions.

When Harry’s at home, it’s warm and soft cardigans atop of light as air undershirts, some well-worn trousers he can barely feel on his legs anymore. A gentleman can’t go about naked, but there’s nothing saying he can’t go about _feeling_ like he’s naked.

For sleep, he favors the thread-bare band t-shirts of his rebellious youth, full of the scents of memories. A pair of comfortable gray joggings that feels like being wrapped in a cloud. Of a gentleman, he only has the manners left.

His robe, he chose for the color more than anything, so similar to his mother’s scales. It is the only part of his most private hoard he doesn’t mind wearing in front of strangers, if only because he’d rather have the feeling of being safely held within his mother’s embrace than not. He still hates whenever someone touches it though, hate that they would leave their scent on the fabric.

Only Merlin has ever gotten his permission to touch it, but that’s because Merlin’s his best friend and he’s been as familiar to him as his parents for a very long time already. It probably has something to do with the sweater or two he has borrowed from him without ever returning them and that are now staying in the far end of his massive walk-in closet.

Which is why he is currently staring at Eggsy, feeling quite dumbfounded, but forever grateful that the boy is far too sleepy to notice how uncharacteristically silent Harry has gone after turning from the oven to greet him.

Harry’s been known to get into a dragon’s rage when well-meaning medical staff would simply pick up his robe, so there is no telling what horrible fate would await the poor soul who would actually put it on.

And the thing is, he can feel his instinctive protectiveness rise up in his veins, but he has no desire to hurt Eggsy for daring to wrap himself in what is _his_.

No, he doesn’t want to hurt him at all, quite the contrary in fact.

If he was listening to his dragon side, Eggsy would already be dumped into what Merlin has half-jokingly called his nest once, that little mountain of clothes he no longer wears but cannot depart with that takes up the back of his closet.

As he stops himself from just throwing Eggsy over his shoulder and doing exactly this, he has the sudden epiphany that he’s been falling in love with him for quite some time now.

Sometimes, even Harry wonders at how he survived this many years as a spy while being so dumb.

***

Even with the man’s permission, Eggsy feels a bit bad about going into his closet, but it’s not like Harry could spare the time to come back for a clean suit, not when he has to coordinate a mission between at least three different branches of Kingsman on top of a few other spy agencies. Harry’s lucky enough already that Eggsy is home from his latest mission and doesn’t mind playing errand boy on his off days for him.

But then again, there are very few things Eggsy wouldn’t do for Harry. There is a very simple reason Eggsy offered to live with him when medical refused to release him from the infirmary if there wasn’t anyone to regularly check up on him. There is a reason he stayed past the couple of weeks required, a reason why he won’t go until Harry tells him in clear terms that he’s overstayed his welcome. So far, he seems to be enjoying his company enough whenever they’re both home, but he has no doubts it’s only temporary.

One day Harry will catch up on his feelings and Eggsy’s not stupid, he knows how that will end. Sure, he won’t lose his friendship over it, but Harry wouldn’t want to be what he will believe as unnecessarily cruel with him. There is no way he’ll want Eggsy to continue living with him.

And he’s okay with that, really he is. He’s lucky already that Harry is fond enough of him that he doesn’t mind him going near his hoard. He’s not sure he understands everything about dragons’ hoard yet, but from the tidbits of information Harry has been volunteering once in a while, he knows scents are part of it and dragons do have a well-developed sense of smell. It’s pretty telling that he didn’t seemed to care he would get a whiff of Eggsy for a few days after his little trip in the closet.

Trip that should already be done with, but even if he feels slightly guilty, he’s also immensely curious and from where he stands he can see some very cool band shirts.

Before he can stop himself, he’s digging through the pile of clothing and wonders if Harry really went to see all those bands in his youth. If so, he’s kind of very jealous.

He snorts in amusement when he gets to one of Merlin’s sweaters, because he remembers Harry’s not-so-innocent expression when he was telling him about how he _borrowed_ them from the handler, remembers the softness in his eyes when he told him how they still smelled like _friendship_ to him. For a trained killer, Harry could be the epitome of cuteness sometimes.

He’s surprised when he finds one of his hoodie buried deep under the little mountain of clothing. It’s one of those he wasn’t really wearing anymore, but kept mainly because he’s not used to letting things go from his years on the estates, and he never even realised it wasn’t in his own closet anymore. As he continue to dig, he sees another hoodie, a few of his shirts and even a cap. All things he hadn’t missed because he’s got less occasions to wear them nowadays and they are kind of ancient even by his standard.

He wonders what it means that Harry has so much of his stuff stashed in his hoard, deep under like a dirty secret. Wonders why he felt the need to steal them instead of simply asking Eggsy.

Cannot help but wonders if maybe, Harry is somehow ashamed of him.

***

“What is it Eggsy?”

Merlin sees him startles in the reflection of his monitors, as if he’s forgotten that he wasn’t alone in the room.

“Nothing, it’s nothing…”

It would be more convincing if he wasn’t still standing in his office, awkwardly shuffling his feet. It’s not so much that Eggsy avoids HQ on his days off, but rather that he’s usually found in Harry’s office, ensuring Arthur is doing none of the work he’s supposed to be doing.

And sure, they are still in the middle of a _situation_ , but Harry has it covered for now. Merlin can spare a few moment to deal with whatever internal crisis Eggsy is having.

“It’s just… Do you think Harry’s ashamed of me?”

If he wasn’t already turning to look at the lad, that would have make him do so in a flash.

“Harry? Ashamed of you? Whatever would give you that idea lad?” Because really, if anyone ever managed to burst from pride over someone else, it would be Harry Hart over Eggsy Unwin. You would think the lad held all the answers to the universe in his hands at hearing Harry talk about him.

“I was in his closet to get his suit and I-” There is a moment of hesitation before the words suddenly fall from Eggsy’s mouth as if he cannot stop them now that he’s started talking. “I know I shouldn’t have, but there was just so many cool band shirts that I had to have a look and I couldn’t stop digging through and then I found some of my clothes, but they were completely at the bottom of the pile, as if it was like some shameful secret that he had them. I mean, sure he didn’t asked but… We’re friends, I don’t mind some of my stuff being part of his hoard.”

For some very long minutes afterwards, Merlin only stares at Eggsy, wondering how it is possible for two grown men to be such idiots.

“Harry’s never told you anything about how dragons court, has he?”

“No? But what’s this got to do with anything?”

Merlin sighs, wondering for a moment if it’s really his place to tell, but to be honest, if watching Harry and Eggsy dancing around each other had been amusing at first, it’s getting more and more exasperating.

“Oh, just about everything. It is very hard to imagine Harry being ashamed of you when he’s been courting you in dragon fashion quite publicly for a while now.” Merlin holds up a hand before Eggsy can start protesting. “What do you think the suits are? If it had only been the one, made by the tailors, it would only have been a practical gift from a mentor to his protégé. But Harry’s the one who made all of your suits and he absolutely refuses to let the tailors touch them.”

Eggsy stammers for a bit and Merlin fears he’ll try to rationalize Harry’s behaviour into something else, anything else, but the lad suddenly falls silent and starts blushing.

“Really?” He looks awfully young like this, with none of his usual bravado showing, for once all his insecurities brought up to the surface when usually he keeps them bottled way down. If Merlin hadn’t already known that Eggsy can deal with his own demons by himself, he might have been tempted to hunt down everyone who ever hurt the lad in the past.

Instead, he makes a noise of confirmation and offers Eggsy a small smile when he finally takes a seat, turning his attention back to his monitors while Eggsy process the information.

“What if… what if I wanted to tell him I was interested too?”

The question doesn’t surprise him at all, not after months of seeing the lad looking at Harry as if he had hung the stars in the sky just for him. Quite frankly, the only reason his two friends aren’t together yet is merely because Harry can be such a self-sacrificing prick whenever it comes to his own happiness.

“Well, usually you’d have to make or find something that could have a place in your own hoard for Harry so that he’d know you’re accepting him as a suitor, but since you’re not a dragon and I don’t think you’ve got anything equivalent to a hoard, that wouldn’t really work. No, if I were you, I’d give him a piece of your clothing for _his_ hoard. Something that he knows has some meaning to you, so that he’ll have an important piece of yourself to keep close and protect.”

There’s a frown on the lad’s face, but one that means he’s actively searching for the perfect gift for Harry. He focuses back on the work at hand, leaving Eggsy to it for that part, trusting him to find the perfect way to let Harry knows that his affection are returned now that Merlin has put him on the right track.

***

When Harry gets home after a tiring four days spent mostly in his office wishing he could turn back time and run away before accepting the position as Arthur, he mostly wants to go bury himself in his hoard and hopefully drown in it. Anything but having to deal with the heads of so many spy agencies again and not getting to shoot them in their stupid faces.

But as soon as he sees that Eggsy is curled up under a blanket on the couch, sleeping without a care in the world, he revises his plans. A quiet night in watching a movie with Eggsy, sitting just close enough that he can feel the boy’s warmth slowly seeping in his clothes seems like a much better way to unwind from the stressful week he’s just had. The best part is that he doesn’t even need to wake up Eggsy and asks him if he’s on board with the idea, because that has become their nightly routine whenever they’re both at home at the same time.

Even if he’s been careful not to make too much noise as he was preparing a light meal for the two of them in the kitchen, when he gets back in the living room, Eggsy is sitting up on the couch, rubbing at his eyes sleepily, his hair in disarray a temptation Harry only resists running his hands through because he’s holding plates.

Harry cannot stop his little pleased smile when he notices Eggsy’s choice of clothing when the boy throws the blanket over to help him with the food. Sure, he’ll always find the jacket with its golden plaques garish, but he knows that Eggsy loves it to pieces and it’s not often that he gets to see him in his style of choice, what with how busy they are with rebuilding the world.

To Harry, seeing Eggsy like this is the equivalent of getting to see the soft underbelly of a dragon, a show of trust that makes him want to curl around the boy and never let him go.

It’s an instinct that is easy to ignore, partly because he knows Eggsy doesn’t know the effect he has on Harry’s dragon like that, but mostly because Eggsy wouldn’t be happy to be kept hidden like the treasure he is. Wouldn’t be the man Harry has fallen in love with.

He’s just pop the movie in the DVD player when he turns around to find Eggsy standing closer than he expected. He looks both shy and determined, the blush on his cheeks softening the hard set of his resolved expression.

“Eggsy?” It’s a quiet murmur, the first word they’ve exchange since Harry’s got home and Eggsy cracks a nervous smile that does nothing to reassure him.

Before he can ask anything more however, Eggsy unzips his jacket and removes it, the skin on his arms breaking into goosebumps at the cool air of the living room. He doesn’t seem to be bothered by it however, doesn’t even seem to be _aware_ of it, all his attention focus on Harry as he steps closer still until only a scant centimeters keep them apart.

“I want you to have it,” the words are said while Eggsy puts the jacket on his shoulders, the warmth engulfing Harry suddenly secondary only to the scent of _home_ and _love_ that he hopes won’t ever wash up from the fabric.

“Oh.” It’s a little more than an exhale, but just enough to make Eggsy finally look up at Harry and notice the pleased blush that heats up his cheeks. “Really?”

“Yeah, really,” he smiles tentatively and Harry smiles in return, raising a hand to cup the back of Eggsy’s neck and taking the final step that separates them. They don’t kiss, somehow it doesn’t seem _right_ yet, but they stand there, their foreheads pressed together and eyes closed in contentment, for much longer than they’ll ever admit to anyone.

It’s cuddled up together under the same blanket that they finally start their movie a small eternity later and Harry would feel self-conscious about his inability to let Eggsy go, but it’s hard to feel that way when Eggsy is clinging back to him just as hard.


End file.
